The old-fashioned photograph is obsolete in this digital world of ours. But even today, still photos can capture a moment in time, move us beyond words, and, in many ways, define the times we live in.
The photo of Donald Trump above will no doubt be the defining image of this campaign and perhaps of the entire Trump era in American history. It speaks to all Americans whether you're a Trump-lover or a Trump-hater. And that's what makes the photo iconic.
Trump-lovers see the strength and the sheer grit of a man who was wounded but unbowed, rising to his feet to shake his fist at his tormentors and assure his supporters that he was OK. Along with the impossibly blue sky and fluttering American flag in the background, the patriotic emotions the image stirs may have just elected Donald Trump president again.
For Trump-haters, that fear is almost palpable. They are trying desperately to deny that the assassination attempt alters the race in any way and look to minimize anything about it, including describing Trump as being "injured" and not shot. They see Trump's fist-shaking as more evidence of his arrogance and his dangerous, unbalanced temper.
For a photo to become truly iconic, it must say something important about the times in which it was taken. The iconic photo of the girl kneeling on the ground after her classmates were shot at Kent State captured the era perfectly.
The flag raising on Iwo Jima, immortalized by the statue at the Marie Corps War Memorial, embodies so much about America and the nation's effort to defeat fascism and militarism.
For many baby boomers, the landing on the moon was a defining moment of our generation. It embodied the can-do spirit of America in the 1960s and the hope that technology would be our salvation. The picture of Neil Armstrong saluting the flag is the one photo that captured the entire NASA enterprise to put a man on the moon and bring him home safely by the end of the decade.
Benjamin Wallace-Wells writing in The New Yorker:
Almost immediately after shots rang out at Donald Trump’s rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, the former President flinched onstage, grabbed at his face, and dropped to the ground. In the chaotic moments that followed, Trump was helped to his feet by Secret Service agents, and delivered definitive proof of life: he raised his right fist toward the sky and mouthed to the crowd, “Fight.” In the news photo that circulated shortly after, taken by Evan Vucci, of the Associated Press, Trump is set against a clear blue sky and four Secret Service agents clutch at him, one of whom stares directly at the camera, his eyes shielded by a pair of black sunglasses. An American flag appears to almost float over the scene. Trump’s lips are pursed, his eyes narrowed, and his chin slightly raised. There are streaks of blood atop his right ear, and on his cheek. He is looking out far beyond what the camera can take in—at the public, at the future—and he is defiant. Whoever tried to kill him failed. It is already the indelible image of our era of political crisis and conflict.
The Never-Trumper's description says a lot about how this image will endure. Wallace-Wells also understands the photo's iconic nature.
But what makes the image is Trump. In its surface details, it carries echoes of the marines at Iwo Jima. In the former President’s bloody defiance, it even evokes Rocky Balboa. On that stage, Trump seemed well aware of the image he was creating. It is an image that captures him as he would like to be seen, so perfectly, in fact, that it may outlast all the rest.
"Let me get my shoes," the former president told his Secret Service detail as they tried to hustle him off the stage. He repeated the request twice: “Let me get my shoes, let me get my shoes," he said to the female Secret Service agent. Then he freed his arms, which were trapped by agents trying to protect him, and looked out at the crowd. Raising his closed fist in the air, he pumped it several times while mouthing the words, "Fight! Fight! Fight!"
There was a look of anger on his face. He raised his fist to the clear blue sky and, framed by the flag, told his supporters to "fight." And that's when Vucci snapped the photo. The Trump campaign could have taken a million photos for an ad and never come close to capturing the essence of the candidate so perfectly.
Perhaps more than Trump's actions, his grace under fire may have elected him on Saturday. Ronald Reagan, who was more seriously wounded, told his wife before he went into surgery, "Honey, I forgot to duck." For Trump to have the wherewithal to worry about his appearance after a bullet grazed his head is almost beyond belief.
Personal courage is a valued commodity in a leader. The American people recognize that and, barring a total Trump collapse, will elect him president again in 2024.
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